YES Plus director picks holes in current education system

If one intends to describe Khurshed Batliwala, director of YES Plus (Youth Empowerment and Skills) programme, a Sri Sri Ravi Shankar initiative, in one sentence, then it would be – a combination of sharp intellect and youthfulness.

Khurshed or Bawa, a name that he has retained since his IIT-Bombay days, is a post-graduate in mathematics from the IIT, but he prefers teaching meditation to mathematics. Flashing his trademark smile, he says, “It is better to teach people meditation and make them happy rather than teach them mathematics and make them miserable.” In an exclusive chat with The Hindu, he dived deep into various aspects such as current education system and the power of meditation.

According to him, the current education system is being misused. He points out that some of the colleges in Delhi declaring that the cut-off mark as 100 per cent is ridiculous. “Study should be not for marks but for knowledge. Develop the penchant for gaining knowledge and do not get into the mad rush for marks. Knowledge will stay forever, marks might fade over a period of time,” he says.

According to him, two things in education are important – domain knowledge and soft skills. “Each complements the other,” he points out.

Critical about textbook reading, he says, “One should not get restricted to textbooks. Explore and enjoy, should be the idea, and it will make a huge difference in life.”

Khurshed, who has been propagating the Vedic concepts of ‘Tamas’, ‘Rajas’ and ‘Sattva’, says, the balance between the former two concepts is important for peace and success in life. “Meditative power is unimaginable and it was proved by our ancient seers. And the balance between ‘Tamas and Rajas’ is important to attain the stage of ‘Sattva’ the ultimate purity, and it can be achieved through meditation,” he points out.

Workshop

Khurshed is here to organise a three-day workshop on meditation and career guidance, and the sessions are being organised by the local Art of Living chapter at Hotel Budhil Park.